U.S. patent number 5,526,734 [Application Number 08/372,518] was granted by the patent office on 1996-06-18 for apparatus for cooking bagels.
This patent grant is currently assigned to PMI International Corporation. Invention is credited to Robert G. Harrison.
United States Patent |
5,526,734 |
Harrison |
June 18, 1996 |
Apparatus for cooking bagels
Abstract
Bagel cooking apparatus which includes a casing divided into a
lower zone in which uncooked bagels can be boiled and an upper,
oven zone for subsequently baking the boiled bagels. A cam
mechanism with an externally accessible operator is provided to
move a bagel-supporting structure housed in the casing between the
lower, boiler zone and the upper, oven zone. A control system
allows a user to independently control the operation of the bagel
cooker during the boiling and baking steps.
Inventors: |
Harrison; Robert G. (Seattle,
WA) |
Assignee: |
PMI International Corporation
(Seattle, WA)
|
Family
ID: |
23468478 |
Appl.
No.: |
08/372,518 |
Filed: |
January 13, 1995 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
99/339; 126/21A;
219/400; 99/410; 99/412; 99/476; 99/477 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47J
37/0641 (20130101); A47J 37/1219 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A47J
37/12 (20060101); A23L 001/00 (); A47J
027/10 () |
Field of
Search: |
;99/339,404,405,410,412,415,450,476,477 ;219/400 ;126/21A |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Scherbel; David
Assistant Examiner: Alexander; Reginald L.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Hughes, Multer & Schacht
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. Bagel cooking apparatus which comprises:
a casing;
a boiler zone in the lower reaches of said casing;
a first heater means in the lower reaches of the casing for heating
water in said boiler zone;
an oven zone in the upper reaches of the casing;
a second, convection heater means in said oven zone;
an open-topped bagel support means; and
a user-actuatable means for lowering said bagel support means to
said boiler zone and for elevating said support means to said oven
zone;
said convection heater being so positioned above said bagel support
means that, with said support means elevated to said oven zone, air
heated by the convection heater is discharged directly from said
convection heater into said support means.
2. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 1 which
comprises
means employable by a user to independently control the operation
of said first and second heater means.
3. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 1 in which the means
for lowering and elevating the bagel support means comprises a
toothed rack mounted to the bagel support means, a pinion having
teeth meshing with the teeth on said rack, shaft means rotatably
supporting said pinion from said casing, and means accessible from
the exterior of the casing for rotating said shaft.
4. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 1 which includes an
imperforate inner pan, surrounded by said casing, for holding water
in which said bagels can be boiled.
5. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 4 which
includes:
a first cover cooperable with said casing to isolate the interior
of the casing; and
a second cover for said water-holding inner pan, said second cover
being supported from said first cover.
6. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 5 in which said
second, convection heater means includes a heater and a fan, both
supportable from said first cover in the oven section of the bagel
cooker.
7. The combination of bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 1
and an accessory which is detachably connectable to said bagel
support means and can be employed to remove said support means from
said casing.
8. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 1 in which the bagel
support means has generally imperforate side and bottom wall means
and in which, with the bagel support means in said elevated
position, the bagel support means cooperates with said casing to
separate at least that part of the oven zone encompassed by the
bagel support means from the boiler zone.
9. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 1 which
comprises
control means comprising: user-manipulatable switch means for
routing electrical energy to a user-selected one of said first and
second heater means, user-settable means for timing the operation
of the selected heater means, and user-adjustable means for so
controlling the operation of the second heater means as to regulate
the temperature in said oven zone.
10. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 9 in which the
convection heater means comprises a fan and a heater both located
in said oven zone, said fan and said heater being so electrically
connected that the fan is operated concomitantly with said second
heater means and the latter is turned on and off as needed to
maintain a selected temperature in said oven zone.
11. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 9 which comprises
means for signalling that the time for which the timing means is
set by a user has expired.
12. Bagel cooking apparatus as defined in claim 9 wherein said
switch means has an OFF position in which neither of said first and
second heaters is energized.
13. Bagel cooking apparatus which comprises:
a casing;
a boiler section in said casing, said boiler section comprising
container means for water in which said bagels can be boiled;
an oven section in said casing; and
means for collecting condensate formed during the operation of said
apparatus;
said condensate collecting means comprising: a receptable which is
removably supported from a wall of said casing and can be reached
from the exterior of said casing and conduit means providing fluid
communication between the interior of said inner casing and said
receptacle.
14. Bagel cooking apparatus which comprises:
a casing;
a boiler zone in said casing;
an oven zone in the casing;
a bagel support means which is immobilizable in said boiler zone to
boil bagels supported thereon and is subsequently immobilizable in
said oven zone to bake the boiled bagels;
a user-actuatable means which is accessible from the exterior of
the casing for moving said bagel support means from a location
where uncooked bagels can be placed on said support means to said
boiler zone, then to said oven zone, and thereafter to a location
where baked bagels can be removed from the support means; and
means for collecting condensate formed during the operation of said
apparatus, said condensate collecting means comprising a receptacle
and vent conduit means providing fluid communication between said
boiler zone and said receptacle.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Bagels are ring-shaped rolls with a tough, chewy texture. They are
prepared by first boiling and then baking a kneaded and proofed
bread dough.
Bagels have become a universal food, and automated, commercial
scale machines for cooking them in large quantities are in
widespread use. However, comparable bagel cooking devices suitable
for home use are not available. Instead, the cook has to boil the
bagels in a pan of water, remove and drain the boiled bagels,
transfer the drained bagels to a baking sheet, and then bake the
bagels. In this age of bread and pasta makers and other automated
appliances, many find the above-described, conventional technique
for cooking bagels onerous if not totally unsatisfactory.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
There have now been invented and disclosed herein certain new and
novel appliances which are scaled for home and other low volume
applications and which greatly simplify the task of boiling and
then baking the proofed and shaped bagel dough.
Generally speaking, these novel appliances combine an electrically
heated boiler with a convection or other oven in a single unit. A
displaceable rack allows the uncooked bagels to be lowered into the
boiler to boil them and to-then be elevated into the oven section
of the unit to complete the cooking process. A control unit
operates the boiling and baking sections of the unit for
appropriate user-selectable periods of time and warns the user when
each of the two cooking steps is completed.
The objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be
apparent to the reader from the foregoing and the appended claims
and as the ensuing detailed description and discussion proceeds in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an external view of a bagel cooker embodying the
principles of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a vertically movable bagel support
structure utilized in the bagel cooker of FIG. 1 to lower the
bagels into the boiler section of the cooker and to subsequently
raise the bagels to the oven section of the cooker;
FIGS. 3 and 4 are fragmentary views of the bagel cooker showing
rack and pinion components of a unit which allows the user to shift
the bagel support structure between the boiler and oven sections of
the bagel cooker;
FIG. 5 is a fragmentary section through the external casing of the
bagel cooker, taken to show the details of an arrangement employed
to vent and capture condensate formed during the operation of the
bagel cooker;
FIG. 6 is a vertical section through the bagel cooker with the FIG.
2 bagel support structure in a lower position in which the bagels
are positioned in the boiler section of the bagel cooker for the
first step of the cooking process;
FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 but with the bagel support
structure elevated into the oven section of the bagel cooker to
bake and thereby complete the cooking of the bagels;
FIG. 8 is an exploded view showing a detachable accessory which can
be used to safely remove a rack of the bagel-support structure from
the hot oven section of the bagel cooker;
FIG. 9 is a schematic of the electrical components of the bagel
cooker; and
FIG. 10 is a partial--and schematic--view of a second bagel cooker
embodying the principles of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to the drawings, FIGS. 1, 6, and 7 depict a bagel
cooker 20 constructed in accord with, and embodying, the principles
of the present invention. Bagel cooker 20 includes a casing 22 and
a hinged cover 24. Housed in casing 22 and supported from the upper
rim 26 of that casing is an imperforate inner casing or pan 28 with
a lower zone 30 in which uncooked bagels are boiled (see FIG. 6)
and an upper zone 32 in which the boiled bagels are subsequently
baked (see FIG. 7). Supported in casing 28 for bidirectional,
vertical movement as suggested by arrow 34 in FIGS. 6 and 7 is a
rack 36 on which the raw bagels are placed and a rack support 38
which can be displaced in the arrow 34 directions by the cam (rack
and pinion) mechanism 40 depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4. The operation
of bagel cooker 20 is controlled by the system depicted in FIG. 9
and identified by reference character 41.
Referring still to FIGS. 1, 6, and 7, the outer housing or casing
22 of bagel cooker 20 has a vertically oriented, cylindrical side
wall 42 and a flat bottom wall 44. Side wall 42 and bottom wall 44
are preferably insulated to isolate a user from the high
temperatures reached in the bagel cooker interior 46.
The cover or lid 24 of bagel cooker 20 is a flat, circular, also
preferably insulated component with a depending, integral,
peripheral flange 47 which fits around the periphery of outer
casing side wall 42 adjacent the upper edge 26 of the casing. Lid
24 keeps hot gases and vapors from escaping the interior 46 of the
bagel cooker and posing a threat of injury to the user of that
appliance. However, cover 24 is not clamped to casing 22 to avoid a
potentially dangerous build-up of pressure in the bagel cooker
interior 46.
As shown in FIG. 6, a hinge 48 supports cover 24 from bagel maker
outer casing side wall 42 for pivotable movement between the closed
position just described and the open position shown in phantom
lines as indicated by bidirectional arrow 50. Hinge 48 includes one
leaf 52 fixed to the peripheral flange 47 of cover 24 and a second,
complementary leaf 54 mounted to a bracket 56 which is, in turn,
mounted to the side wall 42 of bagel cooker outer casing 22. The
two hinge leafs 52 and 54 are connected by a conventional pivot pin
58. Hinge 48 will also typically include an over-center mechanism
(not shown) for retaining cover 24 in the illustrated open
position.
The cover 24 of bagel cooker 20 supports a cover 60 for inner
casing 28 and a convection heating unit which includes heating coil
62, convection fan 64, and fan motor 66. Fan 64 is mounted to the
lower end of the vertically extending fan motor output shaft 68.
The fan is surrounded by a protective shroud 70 with an open lower
end 72 which allows fan 64 to circulate air into the upper, oven
zone 32 of the bagel cooker interior.
Heating element 62 is typically a conventional resistance heater
configured to surround the shaft 68 of fan motor 66. Heater 62 is
mounted in any convenient manner to inner casing cover 60 between
and in spaced relationship cover 60 and the top 74 of fan shroud
70. This allows air to be circulated first over the heater to
increase its temperature, then downwardly past fan shroud 70 and
then up through bagel-supporting rack 36 to bake the bagels 76
being cooked as indicated by the arrows collectively identified by
reference character 78 in FIG. 7.
Before the bagels 76 are baked, however, they are first boiled as
is conventional in cooking bagels. This step is carried out in the
lower, boiling zone 30 of bagel cooker 20 in a body 80 of boiling
water contained in the lower reaches 82 of bagel cooker inner
casing 28. That component of the bagel cooker has an open top,
panlike configuration defined by a cylindrical side wall 84 and a
flat, integral, circular bottom wall 86.
Container or inner casing 28 is supported from the upper edge 26 of
bagel cooker outer casing 22 by an integral, outwardly directed,
circumferentially extending flange 88 located at the upper end 90
of inner casing side wall 84. With the cover 24 of bagel cooker 20
closed, flange 88 is seated in a complementary, downwardly opening
recess 91 formed on the lower or inner side 92 of the cover 60 for
the inner casing. This forms a primary seal to isolate the user
from hot gases and vapors generated in the interior of bagel cooker
20 during the operation of that appliance. Primary sealing is
promoted by dimensioning the flangelike part 94 of inner casing
cover 60 beyond recess 91 so that it will be seated on the upper
edge 26 of bagel cooker outer casing side wall 42 when the bagel
cooker cover 24 is closed.
Referring still to FIGS. 6 and 7, the water 80 in pan component 28
is boiled by a resistance heater 96 which is installed in a hollow
passage 98 through an integral, peripheral boss 100 at the lower
end 102 of inner casing side wall 42. Heater 96 operates on
electrical energy supplied through a line 104 extending from the
heater upwardly through bagel cooker outer casing side wall 42, the
leafs of hinge 48, and beneath an external cover or shield 104 into
a box 107 which is mounted to the top 108 of bagel cooker cover 24.
Box 107 houses bagel cooker control system 41 as well as convection
fan motor 66.
Gases generated by the boiling of the water 80 in bagel cooker
inner pan 28 have the potential of causing a potentially dangerous
buildup of pressure in the interior 46 of the bagel cooker. This
buildup of pressure is avoided by a vent system 110 (see FIGS. 1
and 5) which includes a vent tube 112 and a drip cup 114. Vent tube
112 communicates with the interior 115 of pan component 28 through
an inlet opening 116 in the side wall 84 of the pan. The vent tube
has a generally quarter circle configuration and terminates in a
downwardly facing outlet 118. Outlet 118 is located in an opening
120 in the side wall 42 of bagel cooker outer casing 22 directly
above drip cup 114. The drip cup captures condensate 122 formed
from steam generated in the bagel boiling step.
Drip cup 114 has integral side and bottom walls 124 and 126 with a
downwardly opening recess 128 being provided in drip cup side wall
124. A complementary, vertically extending flange 130 at the inner
side 132 of bagel cooker casing side wall 42 at the lower end of
the opening 120 in that side wall fits into recess 128. That
removably secures the drip cup to casing side wall 42 with the
bottom wall 126 of the drip cup seated on a ledge 134 at the lower
end of the opening. Drip cup 114 can be removed to empty condensate
122 simply by moving it upwardly and then outwardly. These steps
are reversed to replace the empty cup in secured relationship to
the bagel cooker outer casing side wall 42.
Referring now to FIGS. 3, 4, 6, and 7, the cam mechanism 40
provided to move bagel-supporting rack 36 in the arrow 34
directions between boiling zone 30 and baking or oven zone 32
includes an elongated rack 135, a pinion 136, and an external
operator or knob 138. Rack 135 has the customary teeth 140. The cam
mechanism rack is mounted in a vertical orientation and in any
convenient manner to the side wall 142 of the support 38 for, and
surrounding, bagel rack 36.
Pinion 136 has teeth 143 which mesh with the teeth 140 on rack 135.
Pinion 136 is attached to the inner end of a shaft 144 which
extends through the side wall 84 of bagel cooker pan 28 and the
side wall 42 of the cooker's outer casing 24 and is rotatably
supported in an opening 146 in the outer casing side wall. Knob 138
is fixed to the outer end of shaft 144 for rotation with the shaft.
Consequently, rotation of knob 138 in the counterclockwise
direction (as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4) will move cam mechanism rack
135, bagel rack support 38, and bagel rack 36 downwardly in pan 28
toward and to boiler zone 30. Conversely, rotation of external knob
138 in the opposite, clockwise direction will move the cam
mechanism rack, bagel rack support, and bagel rack upwardly into
the oven zone 32 in the bagel cooker. Friction or a detent
arrangement between the knob and outer casing side wall 42 (not
shown) can be employed to retain the bagel rack support, the bagel
rack, and the bagels 76 being baked in the oven zone of bagel
cooker 20.
The details of the bagel rack and its support thus raised and lower
by cam mechanism are not critical. In the exemplary, illustrated
embodiment of the invention, the rack support 38 is an open topped,
sheet metal component with an indentation 148 in its side wall 142
for the rack component 135 of cam mechanism 40 (see FIGS. 2 and 8).
The bagel rack support also has a flat bottom wall 150 with a set
of openings 152 through which water heated by resistance element 96
can circulate to boil the bagels 76 being cooked.
Bagel rack 36 is made up of a flat array 153 of rings or circular
rods 154a-154h with the outer ring 154h being interrupted to
accommodate the segment 156 of bagel rack support 38 bounding the
inner end of the indentation 148 in which the rack 135 of cam
mechanism 40 is mounted. Rings 154a-154h are maintained in the
illustrated, concentric, flat array by bonding them to
equiangularly arranged, radially extending rods 158a-158f. The
outer ends of rods 158a-158f are bent downwardly to form legs 160.
These legs support the flat array 153 of rings 154a-154h in spaced
relationship to the bottom wall 150 of bagel rack support 38. This
allows boiling water 80 to freely circulate up through the openings
152 in the bottom 150 of the rack and into contact with the bagels
76 being boiled. The interstices 162 in the array of rings
154a-154h allows the boiling liquid to freely reach the upper parts
of bagels 76.
Also shown in FIG. 8 is an accessory 164 for removing a hot rack 38
and baked bagels 76 from bagel cooker 20. This accessory includes
an L-shaped component 166 providing a handle 168 and a depending,
integral stem 170 with an enlarged base 172 housing a set of four,
conventional, spring-loaded detents 174. Moving accessory 164
downwardly in the arrow 176 direction results in the base 172 of
the accessory passing through the central opening 176 in bagel rack
38 and in detents 174 consequently being first displaced towards
base 172 and then springing back to the illustrated positions to
trap them beneath bagel rack 38. Thereafter, once the rack and
bagels 76 have been lifted out of bagel cooker 20, a conventional,
spring-loaded operator 178 on handle 168 is depressed to retract
detents 174 toward base 172 and release bagel rack 38.
Turning now to FIG. 9, the control system 41 of bagel cooker 20
regulates the operation of the resistance heater 96 in the boiler
zone of the bagel cooker and the heater 62 and fan 64 in convection
oven zone 32. The control circuit includes a three-position switch
180, an oven zone thermostat 182, a digital timer 184, and an
indicator such as the illustrated buzzer 186. Switch 180 has a BOIL
position in which the heater 96 in the boiler zone 30 of bagel
cooker 20 is connected across AC power source 187 by external cord
187a (see FIGS. 1 AND 9), an OFF position, and a BAKE position in
which the fan 64 in the convection oven zone 32 of the bagel cooker
is connected across the power source and the heater 62 in the oven
section is connected across the power source through thermostat
182. The thermostat has an external control 188 (see FIG. 1) for
adjusting the oven zone temperature, typically between 300.degree.
and 450.degree. F.
Digital timer 184 is wired across AC power source 187 by external
cord 187a. That component of bagel cooker 20 includes the customary
elapsed (or remaining) time display 189, along with equally
conventional START and STOP/RESET buttons 190 and 191 and a SET
button 192 which can be repeatedly depressed to set a time selected
by the user of bagel cooker 20. Buzzer 186 is connected across
power source 187 through timer 184 and, as is conventional, is
turned on when the set time is elapsed.
Bagel cooker is employed by loading uncooked bagels 76 onto bagel
rack 36 and then rotating external knob 138 to lower the rack into
the water 80 in the pan or inner casing 28 of the bagel cooker. SET
button 192 is then employed to set digital timer 184 for the period
of time required to bring water 80 to the boil and to then boil the
bagels for an appropriate length of time. Three-position switch 180
is then set to BOIL, and button 190 is depressed to start timer
184. When the time elapses, buzzer 186 sounds; and the user moves
switch 180 to the OFF position to turn off water heater 96. Next,
knob 138 is rotated to elevate bagel rack 36 and the now boiled
bagels to the convection oven section 32 of the bagel cooker (see
FIG. 7). Then, SET button 192 and thermostat controller 188 are
employed to set the baking time and temperature, switch 180 is
moved to the BAKE position, and start switch 190 is depressed to
start the timer for the baking cycle. Buzzer 186 will sound again
when the baking time elapses. The user then moves switch 180 from
the BAKE position to the OFF position to turn off convection heater
62 and convection fan 64, opens the cover 24 of the bagel cooker
(see FIG. 6), and employs accessory 164 (FIG. 8) in the manner
discussed above to remove bagel rack 36 and the now baked bagels 76
from the bagel cooker.
Bagel cookers embodying the principles of the present invention
need not be of the particular construction illustrated in FIGS. 1-8
and discussed above. For example, the external dimensions of the
bagel cooker outer casing can be reduced and the cooker thereby
made more compact by employing a square configuration rather than a
circular shown in FIG. 1. A bagel support arrangement of that
configuration, identified by reference 194, is depicted in FIG. 10
along with a circular bagel support of comparable capacity for
purposes of comparison.
Many other modifications may of course be made without exceeding
the scope of the present invention. The invention may thus be
embodied in many forms without departing from the spirit or
essential characteristics of the invention. The present embodiments
are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and
not restrictive. The scope of the invention is indicated by the
appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all
changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of
the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.
* * * * *